Menu

Rainier’d

Now many a folk has asked us if we had been to the legendary, and majestic Mt. Rainer, just an easy 2 hours south. To this we would in shame reply “no, not yet.” Well with the summer drawing quickly to an end we made plans with the Cline Crew to visit this craggy site. We loved the back roads trip south from our home town. It was like we were creeping up on the mountain from behind (though I’m not sure if this place has a front or a back per say, any Rainer regulars that can correct me on this?). But we made our way winding through the small towns that border this incredible site. We caught a quick distance glimpse through a farmer’s field and the excitement intensified. It disappeared behind it’s forerunner hill sides, staying out of sight. We shot through its forest fully engulfed in the tree luge created by the surrounding forests. Then as we climbed the mountain side there it was, shooting out from between the trees. I was in awe and stopped to take a rare selfie, yep just me, I’m the shooter not the subject. A quick stop turned into a fun meeting of another adoptive family whose children were grown. It’s such a blessing to commiserate with these people, and I really appreciated their insights and recommendations and support, what am amazing community we are a part of. Then in was off to meet with the rest of the crew and set up a little camp. Our first stop was ‘Groove of the Ancients.” This gave us an up close view of some of the oldest and largest trees in the area. It was amazing to see the roots and trunks of these massive trees. The littles sat inside the roots of a fallen giant, and there was even plenty of room for us adults to join them. We moved along the board walk path, to show the sheer height and size of these behemoths, the littles struck a pose at the base, giving some perspective on the enormity A trip across a fun bridge only added to the adventure, with the promise of a quick dip in the creek below, which turned into a full scale swim for little Mr. We traipse around the trees taking in the sheer size of these literal giants. Then back to camp for relaxed fun and some tradition fire cooked hot dogs , and you know SMORES were a must. Bedtime eventually came, only after a few hours of adult chat time, which is always apart of our get togethers.

Next we headed up the mountain to Paradise Inn, taking our time and enjoying the many pull offs to different sights of the scenic views. The second day the mountain was engulfed in cloud cover, hiding its summit but still revealing the skirted crags making the base, it was a beautiful perspective, shrouded in mystery. The visitor center at Paradise was fun, and we had to say our goodbyes and head back down, taking a few of the fun tunnels that little Mr. loves so much. I kept thinking of this talk as we looked to the light at each tunnel’s end. We stopped in the little town of Greenwater for a couple ice cream cones just to enjoy on the rest of the trip home, MMmmmmm, so yummy! It was a quick trip and most certainly not our last, that place has so many amazing locations to explore, the boys are already making “MANCATION” plans. I’m sure we will be returning there for years to come!